Dolphins have long been a fixture in popular culture due, in part, to their intelligence and similarity to humans. People are drawn to these animals and will go to great lengths to see them, learn about them, and interact with them. While this relationship to humans has helped protect dolphins, it has also put them at risk and interfered with their natural behaviors.
Swim-with-the-dolphins programs have become increasingly popular in recent years. However, new research is showing that human interaction may be harming wild dolphin populations in Hawaii and elsewhere. Recently, several regulatory agencies including the National Marine Fisheries Services, which governs wild dolphin swims, and the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, that oversees captive dolphin encounters, have proposed new rules for human-dolphin interaction. In addition, research, therapy, and other activities involving dolphins are federally regulated. Each of these topic is very controversial and has proven a challenge for regulators with constituents divided on both sides.